Sheet-metal end structure for railway-cars.



V. E. SISSON. SHEET M ETAL END STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN- 22, I9I5- 1,271,234.

Patented July 2, 1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET I.

I OT T f ENTOR BY Y.

ATTORNE Y5 V. E. SISSON. SHEET METAL END STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAYCARS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN- 22, 1915- 1,271,234.

Patented J My 2, 1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

I I D I v [NI/IEN 701a.

' A TTORN/E Y5:

V. E. SISSON. SHEET METAL END STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY CARS. APPLICATION HLEDJAN. 22. 1915.

1,27 1,234., Pat-nted Jul 2, 1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

T ATTORNEY WITNESSES; I o a NV 'NTOR.

v. E. SISSON. SHEET METAL END STRUCTURE FOR R AILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN; 22 1915.

Patented July 2, 1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

v. E. slssom SHEET METAL END STRUCTURE FOR RAILWAY CARS. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 22, I915.

5SHEE EET 5.

ifijif I' m L [NI/EN TOR.

Patented 2,1918.

A Tram/5 ys' Both panels are preferably formed with vertical flanges 35 secured to the corner posts 28 by bolts 36. The lower panel is attached to the end sill 26 by any suitable attaching devices, such as lag screws 37, and is, furthermore, riveted toan angle bar 38, the other part of which extends under the flooring 27 and rests upon the end sill 26, being secured to the latter by bolts 39. The en vertical corrugations ell; these corrugations being preferably of uniform width and depth, for the greater part of their length at least, and merging directly one into the other. These corrugations provide a series of contiguous rib-like formations of substantially equal width projecting alternately in opposite directions from each other, the inwardly projecting formations being designated 41". In cross sectional configuration this portion of the panel describes prefernably an ogee curve. The configuration of the corrugated or stiffened portion of the panel gives the panel a maximum amount of strength and rigidity resisting deflection since the corrugations. in effect, constitute beams, and when thus located side by side a pressure brought to bear against one of these beams has to be capable of producing distortion of the adjacent beams before the panel as a Whole can suffer strain. The arrangcment in this regard is far superior, for the particular purposes for which the panels are designed, to one in which ribs are pressed in a sheet of metal with comparatively wide spaces between them. Furthermore, the panels as preferably constructed present curved or undulated surfaces to the load in the car which tend to deflect the impact of relatively small, heavy articles which would be likelyto puncture a flat surface. The outturned corrugations ll are preferably formed with tapered or semi-conical terminal portions 42 which merge into the upper and lower marginal portions of the panels. The corru ations are preferably formed in this Way or reasons which will he hereinafter explained in connection with the operation of manufacturing, the panels. All of the corrugations terminate within the edges of the panels, thus providing the upper and lower marginal portions above referred to. The purpose of these marginal portions is, first, to stiifen and rigidify the panel as against the tendency to bulge on vertical lines. If the corrugations ran to the edges of the panels, a load upon either of the panels would tend to expand the corrugations and in consequence deflect the end.

This tendency is resisted by the flat marginal portions which extend across the panels at opposite ends of the corrugations. The flat marginal portions at top and bottom of the panels and likewise he marginal portions at the sides, afford means for securing the end structure to the framing of the car with a weather and grain proof connection. By overlapping the panels at the middie for a considerable distance and connecting them with two lines of rivets, as shown, a girth member or reinforcing band is provided which takes the stresses transmitted to it by the corrugations and carries them to the corner posts of the car.

In Figs. 4- to 7 inclusive, I have shown an end structure made up of panels constructed on the same general principles as the panels employed in the car ends previously described, the difieren'ce being that the corrugations instead of running vertically extend horizontally across the car from side to side. The. panels are designated 49, 50. The up per panel 49 comprises, it will be seen (Fig. 6), acentral corrugated portion 51 and a flat marginal portion 52 surrounding the corrugated portion. The corrugated 1 portion is composed of a plurality of parallel inturned corrugations 53 of uniform width and depth, for the greater part of their lengtlnand with pointed or semi-conical te r minal portions 54: which die out into the flat margins at the sides ofthe panels. The corrugations 53 merge one into the other providing in effect a series of oppositely inwardly and outwardly turned rib-like formations the latter being designated 53. The panels may be connected in any suitable manner. inasmuch as the beams, the corrugations 53, 53, run horizontally so as to transmit stresses directly to the corner posts of the car, it will ordinarily be sufiicient to simply overlap the panels one upon the 0th 1' and connect; them by a single line of rivets 55. In Figs. 9 to -11 I have illustrated the method of forming panel such as that shown in Fig. 6. It will be obvious that the panels forming the constructions illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 might be similarly formed.

A slnet of metal 49 is placed upon a stationary die 56 formed with upwardly projecting ribs 57 and between these ribs with corrugations or recesses 58 which are considerably wider than the ribs. The upper or movable die 59 is formed with recesses 60 in which the ribs 57 enter and with rounded projecting ribs 61 adapted to enter the corrugations 58 in the lower die. The ribs 57 and 61 are of uniform height and thickness and in length correspond to the length of the central portions of the corrugations 0f the finished plate, that is, the length of the corrugations less their pointed ends. When the upper dieis brought down upon the sheet of metal on the lower die so as to 40 thickness of the plate, the corrugations corrugations are ive the desired corrugated or undulating U i configuration to the center portion thereof,

the sheet is necessarily considerably distorted. If the dottedlines 49 (Fig. 9) repreout the metal at this place so that the finished panel will be thinner in the center than at its margins. To a greater extent,

however. the dies draw into the corrugation metal taken from the edges or margins of the plate lying along parallel with the corrugations; the edges of the plate originally parallel to the lines of the intended corrugations being'drawn in as indicated by the figure designated -19". This necessitates shearing the plate after. it has been pressed along the dot and dash lines (Fig. 9). The panel is, of course, much stronger than if the additional surface required by'the corrugations was obtained solely or very largely by a thinning of the metal. It has been found that the weakest points on the panel are near the ends of the corrugations. This is because the existence of the fiat margins at the sides of the plate, that is, at the ends of the corrugations, prevent the adjacent portions of the top and bottom margins from pulling in to meet the requirement for addi-- tional metal. For this reason the corrugations instead of terminating abruptly are formed with the relatively long conical or semi-conical terminal points shown. If the only consideration were the maintenance of the corrugated portion of the panel at a thickness as near as possible to'the original might be tapered from their middle points to their terminations. However, this would decrease the value of the corrugations as beams besides leaving fiat spaces of considerable area which would make the plate more susceptible to deflection and more easily punctured by a local thrust. The design I propose is a compromise between the two extremes. The main portion of the corrugations are of uniform depth and thickness, the inturned corrugations merging into the outturned corrugations, which makes this portion ofthe structure essentially a series of beams, while the terminal portions of the tapered down so as to diminish as far as possible the tendency to thin the sheet over much at these places.

The end shown in Fig. 8 is exactly likethat shown in Figs. 4: to 7 inclusi'ye, except that the panels designated 62, 63 are reversed so that the corrugations project outwardly from the marginal portions of the panels instead of inwardly, this necessitating, of course, the bending of the attaching flanges 64in the opposite direction from that in which they are bent in the other construction. By formin the corrugations so that they lie substantially on one side of the plane of the marginal portion of the panels it is possible to make this reversal of the panels by simply reversing the bend of the attaching flanges (this being done, in any event, by an operation separate from the pressin of the corrugations), and thereby adapt the end to different conditions. For example, the Fig. 8 construction is desirable because the corrugations do not diminish the interior length of the car. On the other hand, in order to comply with the requirement of the Interstate Commerce Commission as to maintaining proper distance between the end ladder rungs and the pulling face of the coupler, it may be necessary to have the corrugations turned inwardly into the car as shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6. The plates with the corrugations pressed in them in this manner may be kept in stock and flanged one way or another according to the conditions which prevail in the particular installation.

I claim:

The combination with the framin of a railway car, of a plate steel wall e ement formed with parallel stifiening corrugations of substantially the same .width for the major portion of their length, and spaced one from another sothat the stifiened por-' tion of the plate presents a series of contiguous rib-like formations of substantially equal width which project alternately in opposite directions from each other, said corrugations extending across the plate and terminating within the edges thereof so as to leave fiat margins for attachment to the car framing,.the terminal portions of the corrugations being tapered in width and depth and merging into said flat margins. VINTON E. SISSON. Witnesses:

L. A. FALKENBERG,

H. M. HUTCHINGS. 

